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Fantastic question. The selfish gene - for understanding human behavior Meditations of Marcus Aurelius - for understanding how to be content Debt, the first
by austenallred 9y ago
Fantastic question.
The selfish gene - for understanding human behavior
Meditations of Marcus Aurelius - for understanding how to be content
Debt, the first 5,000 years - for understanding money and finance from the ground up
Wright Brothers - for understanding how technological breakthroughs happen
Snowball (Warren Buffet), Andrew Carnegie and Rockefeller biographies - for understanding the mental mindset to win in business (it's not what you think)
Hackers and painters - for understanding startups and how/why they work
Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance - for understanding beauty in the routine
Essentialism, the disciplined pursuit of less and Walden - for understanding how "stuff" gets in the way of happiness
Les Miserables - for understanding love
- yodsanklai 9y ago> Debt, the first 5,000 years It's often cited on HN, but I've found it very dense and difficult to read.
- mashmac2 9y agoI've had the audiobook version recommended for this exact reason - easier to listen to than to read :)
- thefuzz 9y agoI've heard exactly this about the book, audio book > text
- eliben 9y agoIt is dense and difficult to read, I agree. But it's also very insightful, and hence recommended. I agree with the other comment that listening to difficult books is generally easier than reading.
- ashark 9y agoProbably depends on the kind of stuff you're used to reading, but I thought it was relatively light and lively, haha. My favorite part was the author's knack for writing a paragraph that caused me to think of several critical questions or potential holes, then immediately follow it up with a few paragraphs addressing most or all of those questions and plugging the holes.
- luckyt 9y agoI agree 100%. The beginning was good, gave many unconventional views of what is the essence of debt and money, especially in other cultures and periods in history. But in the middle of the book, the author started rambling about the history of everything with a loose connection to money or debt, with no real point to be made. I gave up reading somewhere around there.
- shubhamjain 9y ago> Debt, the first 5,000 years - for understanding money and finance from the ground up Having picked this a few weeks ago, I am finding it hard to finish because of the ponderous writing. I admit that first few chapters were a revelation, but the cultural verbosity regarding everything becomes wearing quickly. "The Ascent of Money" is much better primer on the evolution of financial system.
- deepakjois 9y agoA good summary of the key arguments in the book can be found in this programme that aired on BBC, hosted by David Graeber himself (the author of the book) http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05447pc http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b05447pc
- vpribish 9y agoI started "The Ascent of Money" and was very happy with the first half or so - then I set it aside for a few years and worked for a hedge fund. When I picked the book up again I couldn't stand how basic, boring, and mistaken the second half was. I wish I could follow your example and suggest a better book :)
- sirspacey 9y agoenlighten us - what did you learn?
- vpribish 9y agofair question, but I don't recall the specifics that disappointed me. It's totally possible that the first half of the book was just much better than the second, and it wasn't anything about my thinking that was responsible. it wasn't a controlled experiment :) ok - paged through the book a bit again and the main thing is that the early stuff was totally new to me (18th century Dutch bonds!) - and the latter is a well-researched rogue's gallery of recent, well-known failures (Enron, Japan's lost decade(s), the recent financial crisis (the book was published in 2008) ). Overall there is a focus on failure and a bunch of editorializing that didn't impress me on the recent stuff and casts doubt on the objectivity of the more distant historical parts. edit: uh - i didn't answer your question. i learned that, holy-crap, it's hard to attribute cause to effect and very very easy to fool yourself. The market is not efficient - but it's usually close enough that correcting doesn't pay that much.
- etplayer 9y ago>Debt, the first 5,000 years - for understanding money and finance from the ground up For me it's nice to see this is being recommended even outside social anarchist/Communist circles.
- austenallred 9y agoInteresting, I see it most often in anarcho-capitalist circles
- etplayer 9y agoThat's very strange for me to hear, considering the position of the author himself and some of the views espoused in the book. Though I shouldn't be saying that books ought to be restricted to certain ideological followers. As a Communist myself I have my own favourites but I doubt they'd be so useful to anyone here.
- alehul 9y agoI'm definitely pro-capitalism personally, but I think a collection of books that offer a convincing argument towards another perspective would be well received in the HN community. You should consider posting some.
- padobson 9y agoI have to agree with this. I have strong opinions about economic and political systems, but I also recognize these are some of the most contentious questions and viewpoints out there. In light of that, a thoughtful and reasonable look at alternatives is the best way to reduce some of that contention.
- frgtpsswrdlame 9y agoThe Progressive Assault on Laissez-Faire by Barbara Fried. It's more pragmatic, aka not Marx/theory but it has some good arguments against our current econ/legal framework.
- PappaPatat 9y agoI am... shocked as this 80% is is my list for the very same reasons. Surely you've enjoyed Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas Hofstadter as much as I have, if not (yet), this is my thank you to you.
- austenallred 9y agoI have not but I absolutely will
- synapse0 9y agoTo anyone who read GED in the past, more than a few years ago I mean, I highly recommed reading it again. Your updated self will appreciate its beauty even more.
- arsmoriendi 9y agoYes. I found this to be true in general, and not just with books but also film, music and even programming languages.
- _jdams 9y agoGEB* :)
- phaus 9y agoFor Andrew Carnegie and Rockefeller, which biographies do you recommend?
- kornish 9y agoNot the OP, but Ron Chernow's Titan is a phenomenal chronicle of Rockefeller.
- austenallred 9y agoYes. And the Carnegie biography by Nasaw is long but very good.
- pklausler 9y agoThe Selfish Gene is a great book but human behavior is hardly its main topic.
- austenallred 9y agoYup, that's just the mental model I gleaned from it
- steelframe 9y agoSelfish genes can result in completely altruistic and sacrificial behavior in an individual.
- LrnByTeach 9y agoGreat to see my favorites here ... > Snowball (Warren Buffet), Andrew Carnegie and Rockefeller biographies - for understanding the mental mindset to win in business (it's not what you think) > Hackers and painters - for understanding startups and how/why they work > Essentialism, the disciplined pursuit of less and Walden - for understanding how "stuff" gets in the way of happiness
- fiftyacorn 9y agoIs the Carnegie one his autobiography?
- austenallred 9y agoNo, biography by Nasaw
- sprafa 9y agoCan you please list which biographies of Carnegie and Rockefeller you recommend ?
- krishna2 9y agoFor Rockefeller, there is Ron Chernow's. There is also this book : The Tycoons: How Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, Jay Gould, and J. P. Morgan Invented the American Supereconomy Reprint Edition, Kindle Edition by Charles R. Morris Links: https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr-ebook/dp/B000XUDGHG/ https://www.amazon.com/Titan-Life-John-Rockefeller-Sr-ebook/... https://www.amazon.com/Andrew-Carnegie-David-Nasaw-ebook/dp/B000XCQ4A0/ https://www.amazon.com/Andrew-Carnegie-David-Nasaw-ebook/dp/... https://www.amazon.com/Tycoons-Carnegie-Rockefeller-Invented-Supereconomy-ebook/dp/B003JH86HU/ https://www.amazon.com/Tycoons-Carnegie-Rockefeller-Invented...
- austenallred 9y agoThe Tycoons is great!